Dental tool



March 19, 1929. G, B. HAKlNS 1,706,060

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filial. A TORNEY Patented -Mar. 19, 1929.

PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE B. HAKINS, OF NORWOOD, NEW YORK.

DENTAL TOOL.

Application filed December 20, 1927. Serial No. 241,426.

This invention relates to a new and improved dental tool, designed to facilitate the transfer of filling material, such as amalgam, cement or the like, in desirable quantities, to the mouth ofthe patient, and its ready insertion in tooth cavities.

Tools, now in general'use, intended to accomplish the above stated object, are ob-' difiiculty experienced in maintaining the tool in proper position over the tooth cavity, while actuating the plunger member thereof to eject the filling material. This separate effected by pressure of the first finger of the hand holding the tool, frequently results in shiftingthe tool, more or less, and discharging the filling material at some distance. from, instead of in the cavity. To recover such material and pack it in the tooth cavity involves careful and rapid work on the part of the dentist and unless sucessfully accomplished, is annoying to the patient.

In order to obviate the above mentioned and other objections to present day tools of the class mentioned, I have devised an improved construction in which the. receptacle of the tool for holding the filling material, is formed in sections, normally spring-separated and designed to be brought together, for taking up the material, by pressure of the thumb and fingers of the hand of the operator, after the manner of manipulating apair of tweezers. In providing normally spring-separated sections, the receptacle for filling material may be easily and readily cleaned so as to prevent any accumulation of adhering particles and the resulting choking up of the tool, as is common in present day tools.

I furthermore provide for the ejection of the filling material from the tool, and its insertion in the tooth cavity by a slight downward pressure of the tool, which may be effected without changing the grip or the position of the hand as the tool is grasped to fill the receptacle. The advantages will be apparent, as there will be operation of the plunger, which is ordinarily no tendency of the tool to shift and deposit the material outside of the cavity and the receptacle end of the tool will be in full sight and not obstructed by the finger of the operator, as is the case with present day tools.

In addition to the foregoing, various other meritorious features are embodied in the construction illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which I have shown the preferred form of my invention.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a perspective view of the tool;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation;

Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the position of the tool when under pressure, to eject the filling material from the containing receptacle.

FigA is a top plan view of the tool as in Figs. 1 and 2, and

F 5 shows a slight modification.

lclerring to the drai 'ings, the body of the tool follows the general design of an ordinary pair of tweezers, in having two nor-- mally separated spring fingers 1, 1, secured together at their rear ends to form a shank or handle.

At the outer ends, each of the fingers carries a half section 2 of a cylindrical open ended receptacle, designed to take up and hold a small pellet of filling material for transfer to the cavity of the tooth to be filled.

In filling the receptacle, the half sections thereof may be closed upon the material, tweezer fashion, or they may be first brought together and then pressed down on the material. causing it to enter and fill the receptacle.

Formed as an extension of one of the fingers, there is a rigid member 3, which terminates at its outer end in a fixed plunger l. As arranged, the plunger closes the upper end of the receptacle when the sections of the latter are pressed together to complete it and acts to eject the contained material therefrom in a manner now to be described.

As previously pointed out, it is important, once the tool is placed in position with its receptacle containing the filling material directly over the tooth cavity, to thus maintain it until the material is ejected from the receptacle and enters the cavity.

To enable this to be accomplished with the least possible disturbance of the tool, the fingers are reduced at a point intermediate their ends to provide spring sections 5, 5, the arrangement being such that slight down 7 pressure on the tool, in the hand ofthe operator,-c:w.ses the spring sections 5, 5, to yield and the plunger to move downwardin the receptacle, ejecting the filling material and forcing it into the tooth cavity immediately l below.

As will be evident, the required downward pressure may be applied without releasing the grip on the tool or changing the position ofthe' hand, so there is no tendency of the toolto move or shift out of line with the tooth cavity and consequently no accidental dischargeof filling material outside of the cavity. 7

To insure proper alignment or registry of the receptacle sections as they are brought together, a guide pin 6, coacting with an opening 7, may be employed or one of the receptacle sections may be provided with a projection 6 coacting with a. notch 7- in the other section.

The important advantages of the invention will be apparent from the foregoing descriptionand it will also be understood that while the disclosure herein is limited,

' in'the main, to what I now consider the preferred form of the tool, various changes, both as to the general form and detail structural features, may be made within the scope of the present invention. Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1; A dental tool co'mprisingfla shank eX- tended to form two normally separated spring fingers terminating in suitably shaped members adapted when combined to. form a containingreceptacle for filling material and an ejector cooperating with the receptacle. V

2. A dental tool comprising a shank, extensions tromthe shank in-the -form of nor mally separated spring fingers terminating in suitably shaped members adapted when combined to form a containing receptacle for filling material, thesaid fingers being provided at a point intermediate their length with a fiexible'resilient portion, and a rigidly supported ejector coacting with the tier;- ible portion of the fingers to discharge the material from-the receptacle.

3. A dental tool comprising a shank, extensions'from the shank in the form of normally separated spring fingers terminating in'suitabl'y shaped members adapted when GEORGE B. I-IAKINS. 

